Iran’s Oil Sales to India to Continue despite Sanctions: Zarif


TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Iran's oil sales to India will continue despite the US threats of sanction pressures against Iran and its economic partner.

India is committed to buying Iranian oil and continuing the bilateral economic cooperation, Zarif said on Saturday after a meeting with his Indian counterpart in New York on the sidelines of the United Nation General Assembly, Indo-Asian News Service news agency reported.

"Our Indian friends have always been categorical in terms of their intention to continue economic cooperation and the import of oil from Iran," he said.

"We have comprehensive cooperation with India that includes energy cooperation because Iran has always been a reliable source of energy for India," Zarif added.

India, Iran's second largest oil customer after China, has not yet decided whether to completely stop purchasing Iran's oil despite its already reduced imports.

The sanctions are due to be re-imposed on Iran's oil industry on November 4. The move comes after US President Donald Trump decided to withdraw his country from the 2015 nuclear deal in May.

The US has said that countries or companies that conduct transactions with Iran are liable to face secondary sanctions.